An Encouraging Visit with our Children

Even though our visits are always closely monitored, and even in the difficult circumstances our family is in, we spend precious moments with our children in captivity.

And we are always very thankful for the opportunity to see our daughters Chaninah (12) and Ishah (10) at least for 2 hours every other week. We brought Besorah with us, too, our fourteen-year-old daughter, freed from captivity on December 4, 2013.

In these very short moments Chaninah told me about an incident that happened the other day. Since our main hearing in Court is at hand, the lawyer of the girls paid them a visit to question them about their well-being and desires for the future.

She [their lawyer] asked them: “Do you really want to go back to your parents?”

She seemed to be quite surprised at their response in unison, “Yes, 100%”.

Further she said, “If your parents would have left the Community already you surely would be at home already!”

Telling me this, Chaninah looked deep into my eyes and said with a very serious tone of voice – almost commanding me, “Abba, YOU DO NOT LEAVE the Community!” Even to just think this way is unheard of for them! Such a thought does not even enter their young minds!

We are so very thankful for their loyal hearts and their willingness to endure and not give up hope to come back to their people one day. May we receive them as worthy parents.

A Ray of Sunlight

You could say that we are headed for a new Dark Ages. But just in time, before all light is being snuffed out, the God of Heaven is again raising up the light of the sun on the earth as He promised in Isaiah 49:6:

It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations, so that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.

The tribes of Jacob will be the light to the nations. This new Israel is a spiritual nation of families living as Acts 2 and 4. The love that caused those first believers to share all things in common is once again blossoming on the earth. A new culture, a new way of life is being created.

This is the verdict

They will raise up generations of children who love their parents and their authority, and also the God of their parents. They bear witness to the truth and shine, as they live out His word and His way for all to see. It is just starting to dawn like the first light in the morning, but it is growing and it will again stand out in stark contrast to the darkness which is also growing. This light will be able to draw those who love the light and it will repel those whose love darkness.

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be plainly seen that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. The ones who practice the truth come to the Light, so that their deeds may be manifested as having been done in God. (John 3:19-21)

We who write this are offering a place to you where you can come out of darkness into the light, the kingdom of God’s beloved Son. We are looking forward to meeting you.

I was so sad that he had done the same thing again to our family by ripping us away from a life where we were loved and cared for and where we were secure and had a purpose. I could not understand why he was doing this.

My oldest daughter was almost seven years old and she cried because she loved me and her friends. She could not understand her father’s decision. After a few weeks my hope that he would come to his senses and return the children was gone as it became clear to me that he was fixed on trying to find a place to live a different life. I decided to go to him because I was concerned about the children, especially the baby. When I arrived I found the baby in shock. She was hardly drinking the bottle and hardly responding to people. She couldn’t handle it when Robert took her away from me still nursing.

Robert’s sister was helping him with the baby at the time. I found out later from her that she was thinking to call me because of the condition of the baby. She was very concerned since she saw that Leah was really not doing good without me. As I came, she started eating and responding again. My greatest hope was that somehow we could all return again together to the community—the place where I knew there was true love and security for my children.

But Robert did not treat me with respect and would not allow me to take care of the children. He did not allow me to have any contact with my parents or others in the community. He actually abused me physically and mentally. I could not continue this way and so called my parents. He was very mad and told me that I could go back to the community but that he would not let the children go with me.

The morning I called the community and asked my friends to pick me up, Robert put all the children in his car and went for the day with them. There was no chance that I could take even the baby.

After I arrived home, the next few weeks were very difficult for me. I called to find out how the children were doing but Robert was very upset with me and I did not know what to do. All I knew was that I am a free person and I can choose what I want to do with my life. And, I wanted to live for others and give my life for my friends and the purpose that God created me for. I did not want to raise children in this society where everyone lives to make money to survive and live only a selfish life.

I wanted to give my life for a greater cause, to be part of a people that love and care for one another, where there is no rich or poor but where all can give everything they have to build a dwelling place of peace and harmony.

Robert has chosen a different course in life and did not stand on his word which he gave when he came to this life and when he married me. He has told many lies and exaggerated things that happened and I do not agree with him. All I can do now is put my trust in God that He would bring justice. My desire is that my children could come to know the life I have and one day come to the same faith. Even though its very difficult as a mother without my children and husband, I know that one day every one will have to give an account of how they lived their life. Everyone will be judged according to their deeds, whether good or evil.

A faithful witness does not lie but a false witness utters lies. (Proverbs 14:5)

There is a way that seems right to a man but its end is the way of death. (Proverbs 14:12)

The light of the righteous rejoices but the lamp of the wicked will be put out. (Proverbs 13:9)

I am ashamed of how Robert is speaking against the community. As hard as it is to be separated especially from my children, I know that I would be miserable there with Robert and also would not be able to give them what is in my heart to give them. My only hope is to be faithful to the one true God and that in His goodness He will bring about true justice and one day the desires of my heart can be fulfilled. I hope that you can come to see for yourself what I am talking about.

Sincerely,

Salem Joy Pleyer

Read Part 1 and Part 2 as well of, “Robert Pleyer’s (former) wife speaks out.”

A Darkening Future

When the light of the sun is gone, people are in darkness. Their only light is the light of the moon. Just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, giving enough light for us to not be totally lost in the dark, the light of the conscience shines in the hearts of every human being ever created, letting them distinguish between good and evil.

The conscience is a lesser light than that of the Word of God, but it still gives enough light that we do not need to stumble in the darkness.

Even over the past 1900 years of spiritual darkness,1 the light of the conscience has still shined in the hearts of the righteous and it led them to do the good they knew to do. In the darkest of times these righteous people did not compromise under the oppression that was upon them, and many suffered not to give way to injustice. They were prepared to live by and even die for what they knew was immovable in their conscience. At one time this immovable knowledge was commonly shared, just as the moon is seen by all on the earth.

But now this “moonlight” is waning. Once it was expected that people were living by their conscience and could be called to that standard. But now the standard of living by the conscience is slowly being erased and the righteous men and women of good and honest character are disappearing from the earth. The self-denial, suffering and discipline that produced good character in people is being replaced by selfishness, pleasure-seeking, and lives of careless ease. The voice of the conscience is more and more being suppressed by public opinion and education2 and strongly ridiculed by the media.

It seems that fewer and fewer people honor God or give thanks to Him, and so all the rest – who don’t honor or thank Him – become futile in their speculations. Their foolish hearts are darkened.3 Normal family order and respect for others is being replaced by what was prophesied in 2 Timothy 3:1-5,

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power.

Children’s disobedience to their parents is one of the signs of the end times. There is a spiritual force at work in the world which is subtly swaying governments to take away the parents’ right to discipline their children. This means the children are losing the right to be raised by loving parents who give them boundaries. Is it any wonder that people are becoming more and more like the rest of the attributes described in 2 Timothy 3:1-5?

Proverbs 20:20 warns us that the light of those who do not respect their parents will go out in time of darkness. These are the times we are living in. Darkness is not just evil things happening more and more, but it is the lack of light needed to see or understand where we are going. Confusion is surely setting into our society. The voices that speak the loudest promoting the new moralities do not agree with the voice of their conscience that still speaks quietly to us in our hearts. After all, it is telling us that something is not right. It is becoming harder and harder to know what is right as so many other points of view are presented. It is very hard to believe in goodness, when the media attacks and tears down what you might have believed in.

To understand this process, you can simply compare the reading material presented in school curriculum. A school primer of 1900 contained stories of children helping their parents and of men and women laying down their lives to meet the challenges of forging a new country, of facing personal hardships and grief. Children were educated in stories of self-denial, loyalty, thankfulness and integrity. Even a passing glance at school reading material now reveals foolish funny stories, fantasy (as opposed to imagination), and cartoon-like pictures. ↩

What would happen if the sun stopped shining?

Have you evermarveled atthe starrysky, whichtellsoftheinfinity of the universe? Andwhen you walkin the moonlight, you are gratefulforthe moonlightthat illuminatesthenight? Then, when thefirst rays of sunlight up themorning skyandannouncea new day, it fillsyour soulwithhope for a newbeginning?Light ispartofGod’s wonderfulcreation.Without light,we would not knowwhere we are, where we goand over what westumble.

The Son of God said in John 9:4,

While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.

When He walked the earth, He brought light into the lives of the people of his day.

In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:4 )

His life was like a light. Some were drawn by his light while others were repelled by it. But those who loved his message and the life He offered were themselves called to become a light:

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)

That light was the life the Holy Spirit brought about at Pentecost in Jerusalem. It was a marvelous light which is described in Acts 2:44 and 4:32. All who believed loved each other so much that they shared everything in common. They were together and they were working to build up a new social order, a restoration of the Twelve Tribes of Israel:

And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! (Acts 26:6-7)

It was a brand new culture that stood as an awesome light and shone out in stark contrast to the dead religion of the Pharisees. Many seeking souls were drawn to it and the light grew as each member was giving all they had for the building up of Messiah’s body on earth. This body of believers became such a great witness over the following 40 years that it spread out over all of the Roman world.

But then something started to happen. Warnings went out that the light was waning.1 They started leaving their first love for their Savior and for one another. Their light was in danger. Something else had started to set in. Their vibrant life of love gradually changed into an institution with more and more rules and regulations. They still claimed to be the same light, but actually the darkness that He had prophesied had started to overtake them:

We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. (John 9:4)

The works they had been doing before (that had created that marvelous light) were no longer motivated by love. Instead the works that followed are now recorded in the history books as the Dark Ages. Tyranny, oppression, inquisition and murder marked the Church that still claimed to hold to the same message that the Son of God had brought. He himself had warned his disciples that they should be careful to guard that light:

If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! (Matthew 6:23)

The religion that was supposed to spread the light spread so much darkness instead!